Gold Sceptre

Gold sceptre

Sceptre Burial, (M5 Nos.10 – A619), Mapungubwe Hill

AD 1250 – AD 1290

52.90g, 206.27mm x 61.15mm

Mapungubwe National Heritage Collection

Reconstructed by the British Museum, 1999

The gold sceptre, mace or staff, consists of two parts, i.e. a longitudinal twisted stem, formed from one sheet of gold foil and a decorative knob or finial that was formed and pleated from gold foil into a circular shape. The top portion of the sceptre is finely decorated with two rows of punctated ornamental decoration. Such 3-dimensional shaping was achieved by folding, creasing and pleating the gold foil and rows of gold nails were used to hold the foil intact. The sceptre

would have originally been shaped onto a wooden core, which has disintegrated over time. The short ceremonial staff probably served as a symbol of authority and power of its bearer – perhaps a rainmaker, community elder or a royal advisor. The gold sceptre is a specifically declared heritage object.